BARRIERS IN WOMEN'S CAREER PROGRESSION IN KAZAKHSTAN: THE EXPERIENCE OF WOMEN IN UPPER MANAGEMENT.

Abstract

This study investigates the barriers that prevent women from progressing to upper management echelons in the workplaces in Kazakhstan. Using the qualitative method, namely semi-structured interviews, with six female top and upper managers in middle to large-sized companies, the paper examines the types of obstacles that they have faced in their career paths and ways they used to overcome them. The respondents were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling methods, while interviews longed for 30-60 minutes. The research found that they have experienced prevention from continuing education, subtle forms of discrimination in workplaces, and biased behaviour of colleagues. The study also identified that family-friendly practices such as remote work and flexible schedule conditions were effective in assisting women balance their job responsibilities and parenting. Moreover, the study found that women have to adopt social norms of behaviour for men such as assertiveness in order to see a progress in their careers. In general, the study points to the necessity to put greater attention to the obstacles in the career paths of women, and creates a vector for studying this issue further for other scholars.